Strange and chilling deaths strike some young people, among them Rachel Keller's niece (Naomi Watts). A mysterious videotape seems to be the cause: after viewing it, a young girl's voice announces by telephone that she will die within 7 days. Rachel investigates the legend, but finds herself experiencing the truth of the curse on her own skin. With the help of ex-boyfriend Noah (Martin Henderson), she tries to unravel the riddle of those images that apparently make no logical sense. She creates a copy of the original, but misfortune (or fate) has it that her son Aidan (David Dorfman) also sees the footage. From this moment, the race against time becomes overwhelming and leads the Rachel/Noah couple to piece together the intricate puzzle pieces, until the 'disturbing discovery and the distressing ending.
Gore Verbinski makes a remake of a Japanese film released in 1998 (Ringu) and directed by Hideo Nakata. It stands out particularly from the horror titles of recent years in being able to nail the viewer to the seat, always giving him the feeling that at any moment something must happen. There are no dips in tension, the direction is quite assured, and the cinematography is very apt. Perhaps a few unclear passages remain, but apparently a sequel is in the works that will (perhaps) reveal what we don't yet know.
A look at the well-crafted Japanese trilogy (Ringu, Ringu 2, Ringu 0) that offers moments of genuine thrilling is recommended.
Review by Maxena
